Vol 1 INFECTION
by ClippedNinja
Summary: For Sakura to save her younger brother,who lost consciousness in The World,she enters this online RPG game as the Heavy Blade BlackCherry and meets Sharingan,a person who has the same goal as her.This is .hack//Another Birth in my way.SasuSaku
1. BlackCherry Sets Foot on The World

This is .hack//another but in my way,so it's a bit different. With the characters in Naruto of course! I felt like reviving this story a bit because they wasn't enough romance in that novel. Characters will be OOC and a lot of the parts will be in the novel. So here goes:

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.hack//Another Birth

Vol. 1//Infection

Chapter 1: BlackCherry Sets Foot on The World

Darkness surrounded me, except for the light of the blood-red moon. Something tickled my feet. I looked down to see pink cherry blossom petals. Suddenly, the floral scent strangled me. I struggled to move, to breathe, to escape. I was alone in the wilderness. Then I saw her.

She stood on a distant hillside, her silhoutte outlined by the eerie moonlight. I moved towards her, but my body felt sluggish, weighed down. Still, I dragged my feet forward, step by step, inch by miserable inch. I had to talk to her.

I drew closer. I could see her hair swaying in the crimson yet pinkish moonlight. She wore an evening dress made of silk, but it was tattered and torn. Her arms and legs were covered with wounds. Even so, she was still really beautiful.

I finally stood close enough to touch her. I extended my hand to tap her shoulder, but as I did, a sudden gust of wind scattered a tornado of cherry blossom petals through the air. She slowly turned towards me. Blood-streaked tears ran down her face.

I tried to speak, to scream, but no sound escaped my throat as I found my self staring at my own frightening mirror image.

x-o-0-0-o-x

I woke, shaking, my dry throat. I had fallen asleep in the chair next to my brother.

Konohamaru laid in the hospital bed; tubes flowed in and out of every appendage. The only sound he made came from the respirator and the machine that recorded his biorhythms. I reached over and held his hans. Looking at his closed eyes, i couldn't help but ask, "What happened, little brother? How long are you going to sleep like this?"

I first had the dream after Konohamaru collapsed. Now the nightmare came regularly.

I felt ta tear run down my cheek. I turned away from my brother's blank face and stood to leave.

On the bus ride home from the hospital, I looked out the window. Staring at the setting sun, I wondered if Konohamaru would ever again witness such beauty.

I was glad that I'd been able to visit him there in the hospital, to give him what support I could. My afternoons were usually taken up during tennis practice, but the team had taken the day off, so I'd jumped on the bus to see Konohamaru before visiting hours ended.

_Come to think of it, the last time I didn't have tennis practice was the day this all began..._

x-o-0-0-o-x

As soon as I had walked through the front door that day, I could hear Kouta calling our mom from the living room.

"Mama, let's play!"

I found Kouta tugging at the hem og Mom's pants while she took a phone call. I ran over to help.

"Kouta, leave Mom alone while she's on the phone. Why don't you play with me?" I squatted down nest to him.

"You wanna draw?" he asked.

"Lets play a game." I had zero artistic talent and hated drawing more than anything.

"Let's draw! I wanna draw something!" he insisted.

"Okay" I sighed. "Go get some paper and crayons."

While he reached for the drawer with the materials, my mom hung up the phone.

"Thanks Sakura. I can take over." She then turned to my little brother. "Kou, you want to draw with Mommy?"

Kouta clung to my leg. "I'll draw with her."

"Come on, Kou. Your sister just got hie from school. She needs to change her clothes."

Kouta nodded.

"We'll play after I've changed okay?"

He reluctantly agreed and I headed for the stairs.

"When you're done, ask Konohamaru to come down, okay?" my mom asked.

I quickly changed and knocked on Konohamaru's door. He didn't answer, so I walked in. He sat in front of his PC with his goggles on.

My little brother loved online games. Lately, he'd been obsessed with something called The World.

"IS that all you ever do? Play video games?" I shouted so he could hear me.

Konohamaru turned from the screen and raised the goggles over his forehead. "This is loads of fun. You should try it!"

"You know that I hate role-playing games." I'd tried a few before, but kept giving up after getting stymied by some mystery or other.

"But this one's different from the regular RPGs," he protested. "You get to interact with different party members from all over the globe. The World may be virtual, but those people are real!"

I sighed. "Right. And you get to hunt evil monsters and slay dragins and everyone's a hero, right? It's so silly."

"No! You don't get it. There are only _two _heroes—the Descendants of Fianna! They're the only ones who managed to clear The One Sin event!"

_Whose descendants? _I didn't understand a thing he sadi. He might as well have been speaking a different language.

Konohamaru must've picked up on my skepticism, since he returned to his controller and muttered, "Well, you'd have fun if you tried it."

What he'd said start ringing a few bells. My school friends had been talking about The World lately. Something about someone or other descendants and fighting with waves and swords...since I wasn't into it, though, I hadn't paid much attention when they got on that topic.

"Hey, c'mere!" Konohamaru beckoned me to his monitor. "Let me just show you something!"

"I can't see a thing," I told him.

"Oh. Let me switch off my FMD."

"Your what?"

"The FMD is the Face Mount Display," he explained.

"Oh, you mean your stupid goggles?"

Once he made the switch, i saw a menu appear on the screen. In the topmost window was the Delta symbol followed by three words: Lonely, Corrupt, Spiral.

"What's that?" I asked.

"That's where I go when I enter a gate on the Delta server. Here, I'll let you choose my next destination. You have to fill in the words for the three choices.

"Just any random words?"

"No." He looked annoyed. "They have to be listed in these menus"

He clicked one and a long list of choices scrolled down. "There's three parts—A, B and C, right?"

"Okay." I nodded.

"Choose one of these words for my first coordinate."

Konohamaru deleted the three previous words and highlighted the choices for part A.

"I can choose any of these words?"

"Right. When you put in all three coordinates, it warps you to the corresponding field."

I didn't really see the point, but picking three things from a list was easy enough. I leaned in closer to the monitor and noticed that in the background a boy was wearing a white cape. Was that Konohamaru's character? He looked so much like the real Konohamaru, I couldn't help but laugh.

"What're you laughing at?"

"You, doofus!" I pointed to the character on the display.

"He's an accomplished Wavemaster."

"Wavemaster? What's that?"

Konohamaru looked at me as if I were an idiot. "It's someone who uses magic, like a wizard. But in here, they're called Wavemasters."

" 'Wavemaster' sounds wussy."

"Maybe to you."

"I'd never be a wuss like that."

"Shut up."

"Is that why you want me to play, so you can cast spells on me to make me do your homework?" I jabbed him in the side.

"Stop it! I just think you'd have fun."

"Not as a goofy Wavemaster, though."

"No, I think you'd make a good Heavy Blade. They're warriors, Sis."

"Not interested." I shrugged.

"Why not? I think you'd be cool, chopping off monsters' heads with a big sword."

"Yeah, sure." I returned to the menu he'd opened and pointed to one of words.

_H__idden._

He clicked on it, and the second menu dropped down.

"Okay, choose another. What's next?" he asked.

Konohamaru scrolled down the list of choices. Unlike the first menu, some of the choices had more than one word, but this added bit of variety didn't stop me from beginning to get bored. I selected the next random one.

"Um…how about _Forbidden._"

"Hidden, Forbidden. Sounds promising." He smiled.

Then he clicked open the C group's menu. I knew which choice I wanted as soon as I saw it. "How about Holy Ground for the last one?"

"Perfect! Hidden, Forbidden, _Holy Ground._"

Looking back on that moment, this was the fateful turning point. If only there were some way I could have known the devastating consequences my choice would soon yield…But at the time, we were both equally ignorant.

"That sounds great," Konohamaru said. "I bet there are lots of monsters to kill there."

I remember Mom waiting for us downstairs. "Mom's gonna kill you if you don't move your butt for dinner."

"Okay, I'll be down in a minute."

The monitor went blank as he drew his goggles, or FMD, or whatever the thing's called, back over his eyes.

I shook my head and went downstairs, thinking of the crazy words I had chosen: Hidden, Forbidden, Holy Ground.

I hated to admit it, but they did sound kinda cool.

Downstairs, I found Kouta drawing with his crayons.

"What are you making, Kouta?" I took a look at the paper. There were five vaguely people-shaped blobs drawn in various colours. Our family, I assumed.

Mom came out of the kitchen. "Where's Konohamaru?"

"Uh, finishing up a game. He said he'd be down in a minute."

Then there was a crash and a heavy thud above us. Mom and I exchanged glances.

"Konohamaru?" I called out. "You okay up there?"

Silence was the only reply.

I ran upstairs and threw open his door. Konohamaru lay sprawled out on his back, completely motionless, his legs entangled with his toppled chair, and his controller still tightly grasped in his hand.

"What happened?" I screamed, trying to stay calm at the same time.

I shook him, but he didn't respond. I tore off the goggles off his head. His eyes were vacant, his pupils rolled back.

He didn't move.

"Wake up!" I slapped his cheek. He looked pale.

I ran downstairs, my legs shaking. I tried telling Mom to call an ambulance, but I sobbed.

"Sakura, what happened!?" my mother shouted.

My heart pounded; I couldn't think. I sank to the floor as she ran upstairs.

The sound of the ambulance siren brought me back with a start. I lifted my head and noticed my mother on the verge of tears.

"Sakura, you need to get a hold of yourself! I need you to look after Kouta, all right?" A moment later, she was gone.

I listened to the siren as it faded in the distance. Holding Kouta, I staggered upstairs and into Konohamaru's room. My foot accidentally kicked the goggles, which now lay on the floor. Light spilled out from the built-in display.

I set Kouta down and looked through the goggles. I couldn't believe what I saw.

The image look like it was the interior of a church. But it seemed to me like an evil place. At the altar stood the statue of a girl bound in chains. _This is a game!? _I felt scared.

Suddenly the image froze and was replaced by the flashing words: SYSTEM ERROR.

I removed the goggles and saw Kouta playfully tapping on the keyboard.

"I'm sorry." Kouta apologized.

"It's okay." I hugged him tightly.

When Mom finally got back home, her face looked stricken with grief as she reported bad news—Konohamaru was in a coma. It didn't seem possible to me. Had the game caused it, or was there something else wrong with Konohamaru?

Dad was stunned when he heard. We went to bed that night with hardly another word. I couldn't sleep; thoughts of my brother haunted me every second.

x-o-0-0-o-x

A bump in the road jostled me back to awareness on the bus ride home from the hospital. I suddenly felt like I had remembered an important clue. Finding Konohamaru unconscious on the floor of his room had driven the details from my memory for a time, but why had I had not remembered them until now?

In the days that followed his collapse, I had read everything I could on whether or not video games could cause comas like the one Konohamaru had fallen into. One of the things I learned about was a condition called PCR, or photo convulsive response, which occurs when an image is rapidly flashed off and on. It sometimes causes seizures, but only to those susceptible to such things. I found an article that said a program called "Deadly Flash," which exploited the phenomenon, had spread through the net about a year earlier as a sort of sick practical joke. However there were no cases of it in the past six months. But Konohamaru had been in the middle of a game, so external program seemed unlikely to be responsible. Besides, the effects of PCR wear off pretty quickly, but Konohamaru wasn't coming out of his coma, so that couldn't be it.

But now as I thought back on those words I had chosen from the game menus—Hidden, Forbidden, Holy Ground—I couldn't escape the feeling that somehow the game, or rather I (since I had chosen the words), had been responsible for putting him into his coma. And ever since he'd collapsed, I'd started having the recurring dream.

And the church I had seen, with its creepy statue…

Presently I was walking around the school during break, I had to be by myself to think this. That was when I saw Temari and her boyfriend Shikamaru on their way to the lunchroom. It suddenly reminded me of a conversation I had with my friends over lunch a month earlier. Shikamaru had brought up The World.

"I heard that another troublesome ghost appeared. Did you?"

"Yeah, I read it on the BBS." Temari answered.

"Is that some kind of event?" Karin jumped into the conversation.

"Hey, why don't we meet up at the church tonight?" Temari suggested.

"What a drag, it might really be haunted." Shikamaru replied.

"Gee, it's just a game!" She countered.

At that time, I'd ignore most of what they were saying. But now the suggestion of a church, a ghost, and what I saw through the goggles swirled around my brain. I was brought back to the presence as someone knocked into me, well as I knocked into someone.

"Oh! I'm sorry." I apologized.

"Tch. Watch it."

It was a guy, he was taller than me. He had raven spiked up hair and obsidian eyes. His features were too dark for me; I had pink hair with emerald eyes. I knew straight away that I was not to go near this guy. But for some odd reason I wanted to speak to him. He looked a bit depressed.

"Are you a freshman?" I asked, I haven't seen him before.

He looked at me with no emotion, "Yes." And walked past me without saying anything afterwards.

_D__id he just walk away from me?_ I thought wildly, he sure had no manners. But I was sure that I wasn't the only one spacing out at the moment, he looked so distant.

I kept that aside as I carried on with my thoughts. I realized that I would understand better if I went into The World myself.

So I decided to try out The World.

_B__ut what if I end up like Konohamaru? My poor parents would be devastated! Maybe I shouldn't go after all. But if I didn't go, I would never learn anything._

_W__ould any of this have happened if I hadn't chosen those words? _If he fell into a coma because of something I did, then it was my responsibility to do whatever I could to help him.

When I finally made it home, I went up to my room and sat in front of my computer. I logged on and registered a new account, determined to create my own character. I recalled Konohamaru telling me that I would make a good Heavy Blade, so I chose that as my class. Next, I was asked to allocate points among physical and magical offense and defense. Since swinging a big sword around is all about physical power, I put most of the points into physical offense.

Finally I was asked to create a character name. She was a girl, so I first thought it should be something graceful. Then I thought of Konohamaru lying there in his hospital bed, and of how little brothers should be able to depend on their big sisters to protect them. And then the dream I kept having again came to mind, how my other self always wore a jet-black evening gown, surrounded by cherry blossom petals. The way she stood there, strong and beautiful though covered with wounds, resonated me—I was hurting for my brother's sake, but I wanted to be strong and mature despite my pain and darkness that seemed to be closing in around me.

I made up my mind and typed in the name.

And in that instant, BlackCherry took her first steps upon the surface of The World.

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So that is how it is! For those of you who read .hack//another birth, it's almost exactly the same but in the future it will be different. I couldn't think up of who should be who in the story so the characters would most likely be OOCs.

Plz review and tell me how you like it, flames are welcomed and don't you just alert or favourite this story without reviewing!!! I got my eyes on you! (Lol)

Akemi_Akira


	2. Encounter Attack

Here's the next chapter! Hopefully I didn't take that long. I really thank you for all my reviews, i was really happy that you liked this story (Even thoguh the plot isn't my own).

Oh and can you please read my oneshot called Passionate Redemption. go into my oh-so-boring profile and you'll find it.^^ Thanks

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.hack//Another Birth

Vol. 1//Infection

Chapter 2: Encounter Attack

I was transfixed by the scenery. I stood a;ong a canal; the setting sun turned its waters a fiery orange. Brick and stone houses lined the canal—I noticed strange patterns adorned the walls and doorways. Later, I learned these were called Waves and represented the various elements of power, such as earth, wind, and fire. Someone controlling those powers, like Konohamaru, was called a Wavemaster rather than a "magic user."

Next to me revolved what was called a Chaos Gate, the method of transportation in and out of the field to the other towns. It shimmered with a golden hue.

Around me, avatars talked animatedly. I could see all kinds of other characters as they hurried past. A big suit of green armor loomed before me. I barely had time to look up at the Heavy Axeman when he passed right through me and disappeared into the Chaos Gate. Characters couldn't bump into each other, but his ghostly passing felt creepy. I decided that I should move away from the gate.

But it wasn't as easy as I had thought. It had been years since I held a video game controller; the landscape swirling around me was a dizzying blur. I wouldn't get anywhere unless I learned how to move!

Nearby, players stared.

One of them approached. "Are you a newbie?"

I tried turning in his direction and eventually managed to see who it was. The Heavy Blade standing before me laughed and beckoned the Blademaster beside him.

"I'm Kakashi and this is Obito. Did you just start playing today?"

"Yeah, a few minutes ago."

Silence. It looked like the two of them were talking to each other, but I couldn't hear anything. The quiet made me nervous. I hated these games.

"Do you understand how to move?" Obito suddenly asked. "If you don't, I'll teach you."

Obito walked around me in a circle.

"Don't feel nervous. We just want you to get used to The World quickly so you can enjoy it." Kakashi smiled, or what seemed to be a smile behind his mask.

They seemed nice, so I decided to take them up on their offer.

"Uh, yes please," I replied, "I think that I can use any help I can get."

"Then I'll invite you into the party. It'll be easier to teach you that way. Shall we exchange member addresses?"

_Member__ addresses? What was he talking about?_

I grabbed the instruction book, but suddenly a window appeared on my screen.

**Kakashi wishes to form a party!**

Not sure what I was getting into, I entered the party.

"Set your voice chat to Party Mode."

"Um…okay.'

They taught me the different kinds of chats, including how you could talk to just the people in your party, secretly talk to one other person, or talk to everyone around you at once, which was the default.

Kakashi and Obito also patiently taught me to maneuver and perform basic commands. After I managed the basics, I walked clumsily through the town. I'd been playing for roughly an hour we approached the edge of the canal.

"So why did you start playing The World?" asked Obito.

"You shouldn't ask questions like that!" scolded Kakashi.

"Why not?"

"It's rude."

"Okay, sorry." Obito apologized.

"It's okay." I answered.

Kakashi changed the subject. "I'd like to head out into the field and fight some monsters. Sorry, we need to get going."

"Is it time already?" asked Obito.

"We made prior arrangements. Let's play again some other time!" Kakashi offered.

"See you later!" Obito added cheerily.

I used the motion commands they taught me and bowed to them. "Thanks for your help!"

"E-mail me if there's anything you don't understand, all right? See ya." Kakashi said.

"Oh, hey. Once you're used to things, you might want to check out Hidden, Forbidden, Holy Ground."

_How does he know about that place!?_

"There's nothing in that field. No monsters show up so it's safe." Obito added.

They waved and left. Their status icon disappeared from the display.

I couldn't get Obito's last words out of my head. _How could Hidden, Forbidden, Holy Ground be safe!?_

Using my new skills, I turned towards the Chaos Gate. Even though it was only a game, my legs felt heavy.

_If it__'s safe, then what happened to Konohamaru? _I had a feeling there was some unseen evil lurking there. In any case, all I could do was go there myself. Nothing would be accomplished if I didn't. It was just a game, right?

I kept telling myself that there was nothing to be afraid of, but…

Kouta's crying brought me back to the real world. I took off the goggles and turned just as Kouta ran into the room. I caught hold of him. "What's the matter?"

Tears stained his cheeks. "Mommy's scary. I wanna stay with you."

"I'm busy right now."

"Sakura, would you mind taking care of Kouta?" Mom's voice floated up from downstairs. She sounded weak and shaky. Ever since my brothers collapse, she had trouble dealing with the rest of the family, especially the needs of a five-year-old. "Sakura, did you hear me?"

"Okay, Mom." _How could I refuse?_

I logged out and carried Kouta downstairs. He stayed by my side all night, until we finally fell asleep on the couch watching videos.

x-o-O-O-o-x

The dream again.

I found myself wandering through the same savage wilderness, headed toward the same distant figure. Again, I dragged my heavy feet until I reached her. Once more,, I extended my hand. But this time the petals swirl up in a whirlwind.

This time she spoke. "Welcome."

She slowly turned. She held a massive golden sword. She turned its hilt to me and held it out.

"What's this?" It was the first time I'd ever spoken in the dream.

"Don't…" she began, but the rest of her words were too quiet for me to make out. A soft breeze swayed the hem of her torn dress.

I took the hilt my hand, and she released it into my grasp. The sword was so heavy that I had to grab it with both hands. Then she smiled at me, and the familiar gust of wind kicked up the cherry blossom petals. Within the dancing petals so thick they almost blocked my view, her smile stayed fixed on me until I woke up.

She was wounded, all alone in the dark, and I still didn't know why. _But perhaps, _I thought, _her courageous resolve in this strange place actually represents the kind of person I want to be._

_I__f that's the case, how could I be like her, braving the darkness without hesitation?_

x-o-O-O-o-x

By the next day, my resolve had abandoned me.

Despite my desire to go directly to the field, I was scared. BlackCherry wandered in the circles around the Chaos Gate. I must have looked completely insane.

A Twin Blade wearing bright blue clothing and a large hat that covered his navy black hair stepped through the gate and stared at me. Noticing that I was staring at him too, he eyed me back for a moment and then said, "What? What is it? You got something to say?"

"No," I said, surprised, "you're the one who was staring anyway"

The Twin Blade said nothing.

"Hello~" I waved in his face. He just stared at me.

"Oh, I get it. You're a newbie aren't you? I might have guessed."

"I can tell that you're one too." He replied.

I fumed, "Well listen you! It's impolite to stare like that, it's the same as in the real world. Don't stare."

The Twin Blade kept quiet again, which made me even angrier.

"Arg! What is up with you anyway." And I turned to run away.

I kept running through the streets and down the alley. Whenever something irritated me in real life, I'd jog. Running made me feel like I was driving out all the negative energy of my body and releasing it into the wind. But I couldn't feel the wind in the game, so running here wasn't helping nearly as much as I wished.

I pictured Konohamaru's face as he lay in the hospital, then I was reminded of my dream: BlackCherry smiling after handing me the golden sword. I realize it was time to stop running. I spun on my heel and made my way back to the Chaos Gate.

The gate shimmered before my eyes. I thought about entering, but now it was the face of that Twin Blade that I couldn't get out of my head. _Does he hate me? Probably, I shouldn't have acted so crazy. _i wanted someone to go with me, so I wouldn't have to go alone. I waited beside the gate to see if he reappeared.

_But how should __I talk to him if he does? _It would sound weird if I asked him to go with me. Why did I want invite _him_, anyway? If I wanted company, I could ask Kakashi and Obito.

As I waited indecisively, the Twin Blade reappeared. He walked past me towards the gate.

"Wait!"

He turned in my direction.

"Look, I'm sorry for my outburst earlier, but I know some interesting words. If you come with you, I'll let you in on them." It was a gamble. But I had a feeling he'd bite.

"Words?"

"Yeah, you know, for the gate." I replied

"Oh, you mean a destination."

"Yeah."

He stood silent for a moment. He must have been thinking about my offer.

"Will you answer already!?" I cried out.

"Sure."

I sent him my member address and we formed a party. When his stats appeared on my screen, I saw that his name was Sharingan

"Hey, sorry that I was rude to you."

"Huh?"

"When I said 'what', remember?"

"Oh!" I had forgotten about it, "its fine. I guess. At least we both apologized."

"So where are we going?" he asked.

"The words are Hidden, Forbidden, Holy Ground."

"Alright, let's go."

I entered the destination on the same menu Konohamaru had shown me.

Hidden, Forbidden, Holy Ground. _Is this the place?_ My heart filled with uncertainty.

"Wow, look at this!" Sharingan said as we arrived.

A large stone building towered before us. Surrounding it was a patchy bank of clouds. It was dusk. There was nothing else.

_Maybe I was wrong about this location._

Sharingan looked at me as I peered around.

"Nothing here. Let's go look at that building." I said and turned to ran. Sharingan followed from behind me.

The building wasn't that far. A large door stood open on one side. We cautiously stepped through.

Once I saw what was inside, my eyes widened. There was no mistake. This was the very place that I had seen on the night Konohamaru collapsed. The statue of the bound girl was there at the altar.

"Hey." I pointed to the statue. "What _is_ that thing?"

Suddenly there was a flicker of movement from the side, and I turned to see what looked like a skinny (and very ugly) dwarf. He stepped out from a hidden alcove to advance on us, his claws raised and fangs bared.

"Aaah! Stay back!" I shouted as I raised my sword shakily. Then I realized that I didn't know how to fight in the game. Were there special commands or something?

While groping for the manual with one hand, I randomly mashed the controller buttons with the other. I apparently got something right, because my sword swung down and made contact. A small icon appeared over the monster as it collapsed and disintegrated. It read 70 EXP.

"It was just a wimpy goblin." Sharingan gestured with one of his Twin Blades at the space the monster occupied. "You didn't even need my help, did you?"

"Uh, yeah. I handled it."

I doubt Sharingan brought my tough act, but he just turned and walked towards the statue. I followed closely behind, my heart pounding as he examined the artwork carefully.

The statue girl had eight chains binding her, one on each wrist, elbows and knees, as well as around her hip and neck. It didn't look to me like she was _enshrined _here in this church…She was _imprisoned._

"She looks so sad." I muttered.

Sharingan leaned forward to look as something engraved on the statues pedestal.

"What's it say?" I asked.

"_Skeith, Innis, Magus._ I can't read anything after that. The inscriptions faded."

"What do you think it means? Are those some kind of names?"

Sharingan just shrugged and frowned at the faint letters.

I waited in silence while he continued to study the inscription. I thought about this stranger who had agreed to come here with me. I wondered who he was in real life. Either way, I had the impression that he was a good guy. I wondered if I should tell him the real reason I came here.

_Konohamaru…should I? _I decided I could at least try.

"You're nicer than I thought. I mean, you didn't get too mad at me when we first met, and you agreed to come here when you knew I was new to the game. But the real reason I'm—"

The door opened behind us. We both turned in surprise.

"Hey! What are you doing here!?" demanded the Blademaster. He strode past the threshold.

Unlike any character I've seen before, a pair of gorgeous white wings extended from his blue and silver armor. Silver hair framed his angry face as he stared us down.

I wanted to say it was none of his business, but he looked mad enough to kill me.

"What about you, huh?" Sharingan defended.

"There's no time to explain! It's too dangerous here!" the knight shouted.

"What?" Sharingan said.

"I'm telling you to get out!"

He suddenly charged. A name appeared above his avatar: Byakugan

"Wh-what're you talking about?" I stammered.

But before I could finish speaking, the screen went haywire; the colour inverted to a negative image, and a strange noise erupted in my earphones. Above us, part of the ceiling distorted and then warped into a hole. It opened even wider, until it expelled a large monster. The creature was headless, yet carried a skull in its right hand and brandished a sword menacingly in its left.

"Leave here at once!" Byakugan shouted to us once more, and then leapt at the monster.

With an overhead flash of silver from the knight, the creature fell to its knees and turned black. The Blademaster had defeated it in a single blow.

I heaved a sigh in relief, but then the screeching sound erupted again. The screen colours inverted for a moment, as a strange violet field enveloped the body of the monster. Its colour returned and the creature, now covered in patchy lines like violet lightning, stood and le out a roar.

Byakugan held his ground.

"This one as well." He muttered as he prepared his attack.

_Is this part of some kind of event?_

"Why isn't that thing dead?" demanded Sharingan. "What's going on? Why is it glowing like that?"

"It's a Data Bug!" Byakugan shouted. "A virus has rewritten its parameter—it has an infinite number of hit points!"

That means it couldn't be defeated. _Impossible!_

I stared at the monster before me, my throat parched. "This must be the one!" I cried. _Could this creature—or rather this Data Bug—have attacked Konohamaru? _I was sure he'd fought it bravely, while his own hit points slowly diminished. If that was true, then it was my fault. _I chose his destination. I brought him here._

A wash of emotions ran over me: regret, anger, grief, and despair. I brandished my sword.

"I'll kill you!" I cried as I charged.

Byakugan shouted behind me, but I couldn't hear what he said.

I slashed at the monster. I knew I couldn't defeat it, but my rage had overtaken me.

"Didn't you hear me!?" Byakugan appeared by my side, continuing to attack. His voice sounded bitter; he knew that it was impossible to win.

"I can't run away!" I slashed the monster again and again—to no avail. "Konohamaru!" I shouted his name like a war cry.

Suddenly, a dazzling light speared the monster from somewhere behind me. The creature took a direct hit, and the patchy lines of lightning vanished.

Byakugan slashed again, and it collapsed to the ground, dead. This time it disappeared, like all defeated monsters should.

"But h-how…?" Byakugan stammered, confused.

I suddenly felt weak and tired; the strength drained from my own tense body. I sank back in the chair.

Byakugan turned towards Sharingan. "Now I understand," he declared coldly. "Look at you. You're just as bad as the virus that caused this. To think that I was saved by _you!_"

_W__hat is he talking about?_

"No, it's not me. I mean…I don't even know—" Sharingan explained.

"Do not lie to me!" Byakugan stood directly before Sharingan. I couldn't understand why he was so angry.

"What's going on!?" I shouted.

"Recently, many places in The World have been damaged by a strange virus. Anyone spreading the virus shall receive no mercy!" Byakugan cried out in anger. "I did not expect to find the one responsible so soon."

"I didn't do anything!" Sharingan shouted.

Byakugan raised his sword.

_How could Sharingan be responsible? __It doesn't make sense. But he somehow managed to defeat the monster with one magical strike. What did he do?_

"Defend yourself." demanded Byakugan.

"I won't! There's no reason to fight."

"I've got a damn good reason! Now draw!" the Blademaster advanced.

"I don't want to fight," Sharingan insisted. "I just—"

I was furious. "What is the _matter _with you!?" I yelled at Byakugan. "That's hardly the way to talk to someone who just saved your life!" I charged towards him; he dodged me with a quick sidestep.

The three of us faced each other down. Finally, Byakugan drew back a pace and sheathed his sword.

"I still don't trust you," he said, glaring at each of us in turn. "I just require the time to think through." He turned and walked towards the door. "But if I find out that you are indeed in league with the hackers, I _will _destroy you!" Then he was gone.

I looked at Sharingan and noticed for the first time that his clothing changed from bright blue to a dark navy colour. Strange designs coiled around the clothes.

"What happened to your outfit?" I asked. "And was that some kind of magic you used to defeat that monster?"

Sharingan shrugged dejectedly. "I don't know."

Somehow, Sharingan's magic had rendered the creature vulnerable to Byakugan's final strike. _But how did he do it? _The virus had been able to rewrite the monster's data to make it invincible, but Sharingan's skill rewrote the Data Bug's parameters again, returning it to an ordinary monster.

_B__ut he's just a newbie like me! Unless there was something to what Byakugan said…_I looked at Sharingan more closely and realized that the colour of his clothes wasn't the only thing that had changed; a bracelet had appeared on his right arm.

Noticing that I stared at the bracelet, Sharingan touched it with his left hand. He stood silently for a long time. When he finally spoke, his voice was filled with sorrow, like a lost child with no hope of founding his home. "Kyuubi fell into a coma."

I almost dropped the controller. _A coma? _My heartbeat thundered furiously in my ears.

Sharingan told me his story. He was a newbie, as his level indicated. He'd started playing the game after invited by his friend Kyuubi. It seems Kyuubi had garnered quite a reputation in The World as a Blademaster. He was even legendary, he'd promised Sharingan to show him the ropes, but the first time Sharingan went with him to a field, they witness a girl being chased by a monster unlike anything Kyuubi had ever seen.

The girl tried to give Kyuubi something resembling a book, but the monster jumped between them and attacked. Eventually, its onslaught was too much for Kyuubi. It killed him. Normally when characters died in The World, a death icon flashed over their heads and they disappeared, but when _this _monster defeated Kyuubi, Kyuubi was pierced by a mysterious light and his character data disassembled into pieces. Or at least, that's what I understood—Sharingan's explanation was a little garbled. He was very emotional when he talked about it.

Kite was nearly killed by the creature, but just before it struck some kind of staff fell from the sky and warped him to another field. His life had been saved, but he wasn't sure why.

Afterwards, Sharingan contacted his friend, but he didn't respond. It was until later that he learned that Kyuubi had fallen into a coma.

My head swam.

_My second day of playing, and already __I've met someone in the predicament._

Sharingan continued his story. "When Byakugan was fighting the Data Bug monster here, I thought he might end up like Kyuubi did, so I desperately wanted to do something to stop it. Suddenly it was like I heard a voice…I think it was the girl who we saw being chased, the one who tried to give a book to Kyuubi. I think she somehow gave me the skill that helped us to defeat the Data Bug.

_S__o the same power that can put someone into a coma can also defeat the monster that caused it?_

"I don't really understand this power or what she wanted Kyuubi to do with it. I only know that it's mine now and I want to us it to save Kyuubi, but…" he paused, trying to collect himself. "But I don't know how."

I understood his anguish and helplessness. But it didn't seem like something I could put into words. All I could do was look at him and nod.

We returned in silence to the Delta sever root town, Mac Anu. As always, the chaos gate was revolving, but the pretty round shape of the gate now looked a little distorted to me. The World was a beautiful place, but there was darkness lurking in its depths.

At least I finally had some clues, but I needed time to absorb everything, so I told Sharingan that I needed to sleep and logged out. As I left, I could fell his sad eyes staring at me.

x-o-O-O-o-x

I shivered. Konohamaru's room was cold. Even though I'd left The World, what I'd seen had been too vivid to easily forget. My arm felt sluggish, like I'd been holding a heavy sword in real life. It reminded me of the huge sword I'd been given in my dreams. Somehow, the muscle memory of my grip on the weapon linked the game with the real world.

I quietly entered the room and decided to check Hana, Konohamaru's pet.

Opening the prairie dog pen, I took Hana from her cage, then sat down in front of the window and held her in my lap.

A year earlier, there had been a ban on these small animals, but it was lifted right before my brother decided to buy a pet with his birthday money.

When Konohamaru had first gotten her, I was not amused—she reminded me too much of a big rat. But I'd grown used to the prairie dog, and now I enjoyed these quite moments, sitting together in the darkness.

Her eyelids drooped as I petted her.

"What happened? That was just a game, wasn't it?" I mumbled. Hana just chirped at me.

I watched the rain slide down the window and wondered if I could continue going to The World.

_W__ould I end up like Konohamaru? If Sharingan hadn't used his skill, I could have been lying unconscious right now._

I didn't have enough information. Nor was I powerful enough.

Hana squirmed in my hands. I realized I was holding her too tightly. "Sorry." I said, petting her head to make amends.

I gazed at our family portrait that sat on top of Konohamaru's desk. Kind Konohamaru…he always believed in everyone. That sometimes got him onto trouble, but even if he got tricked, he wouldn't give up on people.

I decided that I would believe Sharingan.

I returned Hana to her cage and fed her. "You be sure to eat." I told her. (She'd been eating less since Konohamaru's collapse.) I went to my room and decided to email Sharingan. I quickly typed a short message:

**I don****'t really understand what happened, but I believe your story. I'm very busy with school, but I'd like to help with your quest. Please contact me when you want to continue.**

I hit 'send' and then felt a pang of regret. The doubts returned, but then I realized that I was just being neurotic.

I wished I weren't scared. I wanted to be strong and courageous—like BlackCherry. My other self, who lived in The World. She wouldn't complain, no matter what.

* * *

Finally I'm done with this chapter!! Yay! Updates will take a while since the chapters will be long, but it's worthwhile right?

Characters are OOC as you can see/read. But I will try not to overdo it. Sasuke, in The World, will be kind while in the real world he is who he is. He's kinda a kind person since his family isn't dead. Oh and also since The World is an online _RPG _game, he role plays as a kind and caring character.

Instead of Naruto being a heroine, it's Sasuke's turn. Yay!

Please review or you will suffer a negative life! Lol Jk. But stops being lazy asses, if you have time to read, then you have time to review. I'm a lazy person but I always review stories I read!

Well, until next time!

Akemi_Akira


	3. A Bolt from the Blue

Sorry for this late update. An excuse just like other authors, SCHOOL!!!!

Anywho I thank WrongTimeForDreaming for pointing out in the last chapter that I said heroine instead of hero. I laughed myself at my silliness. I can't remember what I was thinking haha. I also thank you all the reviewers for reviewing my story. I appreciate it a lot!

This chapter is dedicated to TwiLigHT8D for supporting me to carry on typing. I would've taken even longer if it weren't for her nagging me (which I had actually asked her to…)

Hopefully you all know by now that mostly ALL of the characters are OOC ^ ^

Disclaimer: .hack//Another Bith is not mine, it is Miu Kawasaki's. I just wanted other people to read this amazing story, so Iput it up with some romance added.

* * *

.hack//Another Birth

Vol. 1//Infection

Chapter 3: A Bolt from the Blue

I held Konohamaru's delicate hand as I told him about the previous night's adventure. I told him about Kyuubi, so he would know that he wasn't alone and that I was trying to help him any way I could.

Sifting through what had happened, I felt like I had made progress, but I wasn't sure what any of it meant. Everything was still too scattered, and it left me feeling confused. And yet I also felt like I was on the right track. It definitely was reassuring to find an ally like Sharingan—someone who was after the same goal.

But if only I'd never suggested those words to Konohamaru… "It's my fault you're here," I told my brother. "I'm sorry."

I squeezed his hand. Even when I tried not to think about it, my guilt weighed heavily on my mind.

x-o-0-0-o-x

When I got home, I fired up my PC right away. The familiar _ding_ signaled new mail; there were two messages. One was from the CyberConnect Corporation, so I assumed it was registration confirmation or the like, and the other was from Sharingan. I quickly opened it.

**Thanks. ****Hope to see you around again.**

He sounded so indifferent. _Maybe I shouldn't have e-mailed him after all, _I thought, but before I could dwell on it, I heard Mom call me downstairs for dinner.

We'd been eating late recently because Mom would visit Konohamaru in the hospital. In fact, every aspect of life around the house had changed since Konohamaru's collapse. Gone was the dinner table banter, replaced instead by an awkward adherence to ritual politeness. Kouta's complaints about whatever food was 'yucky' instead of 'yummy' was the only attempt at conversation.

In the past, Mom had never allowed the TV on during dinner, but now no one bothered to turn it off. Often the terrible sounds of a sitcom's laugh track were all we had to break the mood, but they usually just made the oppressive silence that much worse.

I sat down, my guilt welling up again as I looked at my parents' somber expressions. No one would feel this way if I hadn't chosen that stupid destination, those fateful words.

I wasn't hungry, but I knew Mom would yell if I didn't eat. I put the rice bowl to my mouth and shoveled it in.

Mom gasped. "Sakura, stop eating like that. Hisashi, say something to her."

Dad looked at me, but remained quiet. I decided to start a conversation to see if I could lighten the mood.

"They're going to announce who's first string on the tennis team soon. I have to keep my strength up." I rolled up my sleeve and flexed my bicep.

Dad smiled. "You'll knock 'em dead. You've always had good reflexes."

"I'm like you, Dad. Good at sports, bad at studying." I forced myself to smile.

"What do you mean, bad at studying? I'm a school teacher, you know." He said, proudly sticking his chest out.

"Yeah, a _gym_ teacher."

Kouta giggled.

"Even a gym teacher has to earn a college degree, and you don't get one without studying." Dad reminded me.

"Yeah, but you hated it, didn't you?"

"Well…"

"See!" I said triumphantly. But Dad looked wounded instead of treating it as a plain teasing. He turned back to his food.

The table fell silent. I tried not to let my smile fade, but I had nothing else to say. _This sucks._

"Mommy, I've gotta potty." Kouta tugged on Mom's sleeve.

"Okay."

Mom and Kouta left the dining room. Dad looked over his shoulders as if checking to make sure they were out of earshot, then turned and looked at me. It made me feel nervous for some reason.

"Sakura," he said softly. "I'm sorry."

"Huh?"

"You don't have to force yourself to be cheerful just because you're the big sister."

_H__e noticed. _"I'm not forcing anything." I insisted.

He smiled back and we finished eating in silence.

When I got up to clear the dishes, I heard him quietly say, "Your dad has to be stronger too."

x-o-0-0-o-x

I sat in front of the computer, unable to move. I was suddenly afraid to go back to The World. _What if I ended up in a coma just like Konohamaru? _My family would no doubt crack under the strain.

Feeling paralyzed, I realized there was no way I could go into the game today.

I returned the controller to the desk, removed the goggles and stretched on my bed. I knew there was a lot I'd be able to learn from the game, but I stood to lose a lot as well. With these conflicting thoughts racing through my mind, I fell asleep.

I didn't have any dreams that night. I almost felt disappointed. Maybe my mirror image in the dream world had fulfilled her duty now that she'd given me the golden sword.

x-o-0-0-o-x

"Oi! This time I got proof." Shikamaru said. He approached Hinata, Temari, Karin and me while we ate lunch the next day.

"You mean the game again?" Temari raised an annoyed brow. Lately, it seemed like all Shikamaru talked about during lunch was gaming.

"It was troublesome to check on the 'net in the morning, but I read a new thread about ghosts. They swear it's the real thing. Let's go check it out tonight, okay?"

_Ghosts? _I had to ask, "Do you know an area where ghosts appear?"

Everyone turned and looked at me in surprise.

"Don't tell me _you're _playing The World, Haruno?"

"No. I just can't help being a little interested…I mean, I've heard you guys talk about it so much, of course I've caught on to a few things!" I couldn't tell them I had logged onto their game; they might want to join me. Knowing the dangers I faced and the fact that I was searching for the source of the virus, I couldn't endanger my friends.

Besides, they were used to playing for fun. I didn't want to waste time being dragged on silly adventures when I had a real goal to achieve.

"Yeah, could you see Sakura playing games?" Karin joked.

"Not at all. She's just not the type." Said Shikamaru.

"Though I have to admit, it would be fun to play together." Temari added.

" you kidding!?" Hinata scolded shyly. "You should see Sakura in tennis practice. She's dedicated to working on her backhand and her serve. She doesn't have time to waste on computer games. In fact, she might even make first string!" (A/N: OOC, I know.)

"Hinata…" I said. "I really don't think that's likely…"

I was glad Hinata had bailed me out, but…_first string? Me? _Hinata was on the team too—we'd been friends ever since elementary school, and she's been the one who'd convinced _me_ to try out for tennis—so she knew as well as I did that there was only five sports and eight juniors; there was no way a freshman like me would get picked.

"Um, don't take me so seriously," Hinata backpedaled. "It was a joke."

I sat back. _Of course she was kidding, that's Hinata. _I should have realized immediately and played along. But to me, it wasn't a joke. I knew there was no chance of me making first string, but in my heart, I _really _wanted it.

Though now, what I wanted most in the world was for Konohamaru to recover.

"Anyway," said Temari, "By the looks of it, Sakura is totally the outdoorsy type. I can't imagine her sitting for hours cooped up in her room, playing video games!"

_If only they knew__..._

x-o-0-0-o-x

I sighed. I wasn't sure how long I would have to keep up with them, hiding this secret. It made me feel a bit guilty.

I walked through the hallways of the school, wandering aimlessly by myself as always. Being by myself gave me time to think through things, and this was the perfect time.

Unexpectedly I bumped into someone. I looked up, and to my surprise, it was the same guy as last time. Whom I had bumped into. He glared at me.

"I...I'm sorry." I stuttered. Noticing for the first time that he was a pretty good looking guy, I blushed at that thought. There was no time for thinking of those kind of things.

"Do you daydream a lot?" he looked at me with an annoyed face.

"Um...ya I do." I answered lamely. _Stupid_

I noticed that he was about to walk away again, just like last time. But I didn't want him to; I really wanted to speak to him for some odd reason.

"Hey, what is your name?"

He glanced at me and leaned against the wall next to an open window, his hands stuffed in his pocket. "Uchiha Sasuke. Yours?"

I smiled, "Haruno Sakura." Sasuke eyed me a bit.

"What is it that you want?" he asked.

I think that he knew that I wanted to talk to him. Otherwise he wouldn't have asked me that question. He's a strange guy, he almost reminded me of someone. But I couldn't put a finger on it.

"Are you always by yourself?" I asked curiously.

"Lately. Yes." He replied like a robot.

_H__e sure knows how to be polite. _It seems like it'll be hard to talk with him and his stiffness. I racked through my brain for a topic to talk about.

"So um, what sport do you play? I play tennis; it's a really fun game. I enjoy it a lot." I really can't remember the last time I tried to be so conversing. But I wasn't going to stop it with this person.

Sasuke turned his view away from the window, _rude of him, _and faced me. "I love soccer. Though I'm don't play at the school."

_I__f he loves soccer, why doesn't he play it at the school? _If someone loved a certain sport, I was sure that they'll play it. So why doesn't he? Hoping to find out more about him, I asked.

"None of your business." And he walked away.

I was shocked, _what!?_ I quickly grabbed his arm and pulled him to face me. "Hey! I was just trying to be polite! You shouldn't be so—"

"I know." He cut me off.

"Huh?" I stared dumbly at him.

Sasuke sighed and faced me, looking into my eyes, "I know that you were being polite. But I don't want you to be." And this time, he walked away without me saying or doing anything. I just stared at him, utterly shocked and surprised. He knew that I was trying to be polite to him, and that I wanted to talk to him. So why act so coldly?

x-o-0-0-o-x

After tennis practice ended that afternoon, the coach gathered everyone together. It was pretty obvious what for; standing behind the coach, the upperclassman manager, Tenten, was holding what had to be the first-string uniforms. Hinata and I stood together nervously with the other freshmen.

"After paying close attention to your practices up to this point, I'm ready to announce the players for this fall's tournament," the coach said. "If your name is called, please come forward to get your uniform."

The coach rummaged in his pocket for a crumpled memo and handed it to our captain. "Read it, Shizune."

"Yes, sir."

My heart was beating fast, even though I knew there was no hope.

"First, in singles, Haruno Sakura."

My heart stopped. _Did he just say…?_

"Haruno! Respond!" shouted the coach.

"Yes, sir!" I stood at attention.

"Get your uniform."

I stole a glance at Hinata, who looked as shocked as I probably did, then timidly stepped forward and took a uniform from Tenten. My hands were shaking.

The uniform itself was old and nearly threadbare, but I didn't care. I had actually made it!

"I'm glad you were chosen," Tenten whispered to me, smiling. "You're always at practice before everyone else to help set up and you've shown the most dedication."

I was grateful she'd noticed.

"You deserve it. Kick some butt, Haruno."

"Sakura. I prefer people using my name." I smiled.

She let out s little giggle, but tried to keep it quite; I didn't think she wanted the juniors to hear. I like Tenten. She is definitely the athletic type, though I've heard that she enjoys academic clubs too, but she was Captain Shizune's childhood friend, so she got the position. And she did a good job keeping things organized.

I took the uniform and returned to my spot next to the stunned Hinata. My legs trembled with excitement. I didn't even hear the names that were called for the double teams.

'That's all. Dismissed!"

As the other girls shuffled off to the locker room, the freshman gathered around me, chattering excitedly. I was still a bit dazed, but Hinata had obviously recovered—she hugged me.

"Sakura!" she cried. "Congratulations!"

I hugged her back, "Are you sure I'm not dreaming?" I asked.

The other freshman congratulated me as well. "Good luck, Haruno."

"I'll do my best!" I promised. "Now I'd better practice twice as hard!"

It was finally settling in. After everyone left and I got changed, halfway out of the schools gate I couldn't hold back my excitement any longer and did a little victory dance. When I turned around, though, Sasuke was watching me with an eyebrow raised. My face felt like furnace.

"Er…" I couldn't think of anything to say. Especially what had happened earlier today.

"You're done?" he asked.

I somehow managed not to die on the spot. "Y-Yes…"

"Hn." He said and walked past me, as usual, walking away.

"W-wait, Sasuke!"

He turned around to face me, "What?"

"Um…" I hesitated. _Why did I stop him?_

"What is it that made you make a fool of yourself?" he suddenly asked.

My face heated up again, "Er, well I'm first string in tennis."

"Oh. Aren't you too annoying to be one?"

This time my face was red of anger, "What!?"

_This guy is just so rude!_ I couldn't let one sentence bother me so I calmed down. Sasuke almost has no emotions; I couldn't figure him out even if I tried to. Why was he like this and was he always like this?

"This morning," I took a deep breath, "If you knew that I was being polite, why did you act so coldly?"

I really wanted to know the reason, so I asked with a serious face. But I was quite nervous on the inside.

"I've already told you." He sternly said.

"Well that isn't a proper answer!" I cried out.

"I've got better things to do at this moment." And once again he walked away, out of the schools premises.

I felt so frustrated and confused at the same time. I just knew that I had to get him to be my friend.

I needed to get to Uchiha Sasuke to be my friend.

But why waste my effort? And reality set in. As first string, I should be dedicate all my effort to the team. Some to Sasuke too. _But doesn't Konohamaru deserve all my effort as well?_

x-o-0-0-o-x

That night at dinner, I saw smiles on my parents' faces for the first time in a long while.

Dad said, "That's my girl!" and Mom was really happy for me. Caught up in the mood, even Kouta giggled. It was so good to see them almost back to normal.

I relaxed so much that I almost wept with joy…but I was desperate not to let anyone see me cry.

As I sat down at the computer that night, my doubts from the previous day nagged at me again, but I already knew where my responsibilities lay. Still, it was nearly midnight before I logged on.

I searched if Sharingan was online, but if he was, he didn't reply to my e-mails. It was late and I had no idea whether the real-life Sharingan would be awake. I realized that I didn't even have any clue about what he was like in real life, such as how he was or anything like that. Other than him being strange, I suppose.

I walked along MacAnu's canal, pondering what to do, when my reverie was interrupted.

"Heyyyyyy!"

I turned to see Obito running towards me, waving. Behind him, Nova walked along more leisurely.

They immediately invited me to join their party and I agreed. The game's party chat mechanism made conversations easier.

"Long time." Obito ran circles around me the way he had when we'd first met.

"It's only been three days." I smiled.

"That's a long time for me!"

_I guess three days is a long time to people who do this everyday._

"Your e-mail said you wanted to ask us something?" Kakashi interrupted.

"Yeah. I heard you talking the other day about a place where monsters don't show up."

"Yeah? You mean the church, right?"

"Yes."

"Yeah, there's nothing there. It's just decoration, which makes it a good place to practice your skills until you become proficient. Most players who've been at this awhile know it's empty."

"And you say things like monsters never show up? Ever?" I pressed.

"What do you mean by '_like _monsters'?"

"Um…" I didn't want to tell then about the Data Bug.

Obito tsked. "You weren't scared of the creepy old church, were you, BlackCherry?"

"No, it's not that."

"Did something happen?" asked Kakashi.

"No, nothing happened."

'Why don't we all go together? Obito and I aren't doing anything, and it's been awhile since I've visited. You wanna go?"

I didn't want to risk running into the creature again. I couldn't deal with it myself, but I didn't want to get them tangled up in this mess. _How can I dissuade them? _"Uh, no, that's okay."

"No? Then how about we go somewhere else? Have you ever been to that Expansive, Haunted Sea of Sand place that people are talking about?" Obito asked.

I was glad he'd changed the subject.

"That place might work," Kakashi agreed. "The area level's not too high. I think they just finished designing it, so it'll be fresh for al of us."

I had read on the BBS that a mysterious girl had been spotted there. _Could it be that girl Sharingan mentioned?_

I was a bit uneasy, but I also wanted to check it out. "Okay, that works." I agreed.

"Excellent decision!"

"Let's go right away. Is this your first combat?"

I couldn't tell them I'd fought the other day, so I just nodded.

"Then we'll teach you about combat too."

"Thanks."

We arrived in a desert region littered with gigantic snail shells (large enough to live inside), and the occasional beached starfish (the size of a truck). The area had apparently been designed to resemble a dried-up ocean.

"Oh, goody, there are lots of them." muttered Obito.

"Lots of what?" I asked.

"Magic portals," Kakashi said as he pointed to a big, yellow, spinning sphere with hand-drawn designs specific to the region.

"If you get close to the yellow thing, it invokes a magic portal. Try it out, BlackCherry."

I walked closer. The sphere was roughly twice my height. The instant my avatar stood close enough to touch it, the patterns on its surface unraveled and burst open. A blue treasure box appeared.

"Too bad it's not a monster." Kakashi sounded disappointed.

"It's all good. Let's open it." Obito said eagerly.

"Wait!" shouted Kakashi.

Ignoring Kakashi's plea, Obito opened the treasure box. There was a flash of light—an explosion—and Obito's health meter glowed red; he was nearly dead.

_What the hell was that!?_

"Geez, another bomb." said Obito.

"You idiot, you could've killed BlackCherry! What would you have done if she'd been caught in the blast?"

"Oh yeah. Sorry."

Kakashi huffed. He chanted a spell and Obito's hit points returned to normal.

"Are bombs common?" I asked.

"Yeah, but Obito is also a completist on springing traps."

"A 'completist'?"

"Right. He says he wants to try to spring every kind of trap at least once." Kakashi turned to his friend. "Don't be like that, Obito. It's very annoying." He teased.

"Obito almost died because of a trap?" I gulped. _Were these guys for real?_

"Blue treasure boxes have traps planted in them. You just gotta use a fortune wire and turn them yellow."

"Yellow?"

"Uh-huh. Yellow ones are normal treasure boxes, so if you open them you get items or gold." Kakashi shrugged.

"I almost always get near-death experiences!" Obito cried.

Springing traps with no regards to safety didn't seem like fun to me! _Whatever floats your boat…I guess The World has something for all types._

For the next hour they taught me the basics of combat, until I told them I had to get some sleep. I logged off, feeling grateful for the lesson.

If I wanted to support Sharingan, I'd have to get better at battle. I also needed to grow stronger. I couldn't stand relying on others to protect me.

x-o-0-0-o-x

Over the next few days, I visited various fields: scorched landscapes, frozen wetlands, nighttime wilderness, and dense forests where it was easy to become lost.

I invoked magic portals and found treasures and monsters. Once, I got surrounded by too many enemies…and BlackCherry died for the first time.

It was extremely unpleasant. Afterward, I played more cautiously.

Once my character reached Level 13, I e-mailed Sharingan.

**I read a message on the BBS that mentioned the girl and that black thing you were talking about. ****Do you want to look for them on the Theta server?**

x-o-0-0-o-x

Dun Loireag was the root town on the Theta server. Built on a small plain that was surrounded by towering, rocky mountains, it had a Scottish Highlander theme. The shops and houses were built into sheer rock cliffs. Bridges linked many areas together…though calling them 'bridges' was more than I thought they deserved, since they were just sloping wooden planks (with no railings leading from one platform to another.

The sound of the wind rushed constantly in my ears. Even though I knew it was only a game, as an acrophobe (also known as acrophobia; an abnormal fear of high places), the thought of crossing the bridges terrified me. In spite of my fear, I looked down, trying to find the base of the mountain. Bad idea. All I could see were clouds below me. I scurried away from the edge.

Compared to MacAnu, this place was much smaller, more like a village. I explored the area while I waited for Sharingan.

One lot I came across had a sign out front with a picture of a pig on it. But the bizarre-looking animals I could see in the back of the lot didn't resemble anything in real life, least of all pigs. I looked at the sign once more. _Is this some kind of ranch?_

I decided to talk to the computer-generated character that ran the place. I guess gaming lingo referred them as NPCs for Non-Player Characters.

He explained that he raised and sold the small creatures penned up in the back. They were called grunties.

_G__runties? What the hell kind of name is that?_

I continued through the town for a little while before getting bored and then just returned to the Chaos Gate to wait fro Sharingan. I'm not exactly a patient person.

Finally, he showed.

"You know it's impolite to keep a girl waiting!" I joked.

'Sorry about that." He shrugged.

"We're going to Quiet, Eternal, White Devil, right?"

"Yeah."

"Okay! Let's go!: I said, joining his party.

"Is it okay if I invited someone else along?" he asked.

"Huh!?" this was unexpected.

"He's a Heavy Axeman. He'll be good to have along."

"I guess I don't mind. What kind of person is he?"

"Hmm. Well, rather than me trying to explain him, why don't you just see for yourself? I'm sure he'll be here any moment."

"Fine." I answered curtly. _Am I the only one who doesn't want to involve other unrelated people? _The beginnings of dread pricked my heart.

"You know what?" Sharingan spoke suddenly.

"What?"

"I did some searching without you."

"You did?" I was surprised.

"Yeah. Sorry. But we just met the other day."

"Yeah, I know."

"Well, I wanted to follow a few leads on my own." he said.

"What did you find out?" I asked/

"I read on the boards about this place that looked like a dried-up ocean."

"Oh, I was just there, too."

"You were?" Something in his voice sounded strained.

"Yes."

"Oh." He stared at me.

"See, you should have taken me along!" I teased.

"Well, when did you go?"

"Just the other night." I answered.

"But you're okay, right?" he sounded worried.

"Yeah, why?" I asked.

"Did you meet anything like we did before?"

"No. did you?" before he answered, I knew that he had. "tell me what happened." I demanded.

He sighed and told me that he'd visited the field a few days earlier, before I went with Kakashi and Obito. Unlike when we'd gone, there had been an NPC standing guard at the entrance to the dungeon. He warned Sharingan to return to town, but Kite ignored him and continued forward.

When Sharingan arrived at the deepest point of the dungeon, he encountered a cheerfully reckless Wavemaster and together they fought a Data Bug.

I realized that if I had taken Kakashi and Obito there first, we might have been in danger. I had the feeling that there was some connection between the Data Bug and the places where the girl had been sighted.

Next, Sharingan told me about Chouji in a dungeon where an ogre was giving him the spanking of a lifetime, immediately after Chouji had bragged about what a kick-ass fighter he was.

"I couldn't sit back and let him die, so I ended up lending him a hand." Sharingan said with a smile.

I tried not to laugh. "Hey, does this Chouji guy know about the virus?"

"No."

"Well then are you sure you want to involve him in this!?" I asked, incredulous.

"I don't _want_ to, but I need companions." Kite rubbed his right arm where he wore the bracelet that the girl had given him.

Then it hit me. _Sharingan can fight Data Bugs with the power of the bracelet. _I on the other hand, was utterly powerless against the irregular monsters. Even though we shared the same goal, Sharingan was far more powerful than me.

"Hey," Sharingan asked, suddenly very serious, "do you know about protected areas?"

After listening to Temari talk so often about message board rumors, I'd made it a habit to check the BBS diligently. Some of the threads had mentioned the protected areas.

"Those are places that can't be accessed from the Chaos Gate," I said. "If you try to enter, you show up, see a warning indicator, and then you're warped back to town."

"Yeah, but I went to a protected—"

Our conversation was interrupted as a huge green mass abruptly appeared before us. "You've done well summoning me! Now let us begin our harrowing journey!"

_Say what?_

"You there, woman! I am honoured to your acquaintance. I am the Lone Wolf, Chouji the Silver White!"

"Uh, hi. I'm BlackCherry." I keyed the motion for a bow, but he didn't notice.

"Let us begin our quest!"

I clicked into Whisper Mode so I could speak to Kite without Chouji hearing. "Can you finish telling me your story?" I pressed.

"You'll understand soon enough."

Perhaps Sharingan was taking us to a protected area now. _Is that possible?_

We warped to the field.

"We got right in." Sharingan sounded surprised, as if we shouldn't have been able to get there easily.

The scenery of this place was very different from any of the other fields I had visited.

Purple clouds hung low in the sky; snowflakes danced through the air. What at first appeared to beeline of trees in the distance was actually a rip in the very fabric of the game.

The trees were actually green glyphs; symbols and letters that looked like programming language. The characters zigged and zagged like snakes across a black void. Even the snow-covered ground sported occasional fissures that revealed the computer code.

"Well now, this is rather strange, isn't it?"

I could tell that Chouji was as bewildered as I was.

Occasionally, a scream rent the silence, and when it did, the colour of the scene inverted. _Isn't that the sign of a Data Bug?_

"It's the same as the other day." Sharingan muttered as he looked around.

"What do you mean?" I asked. "Hidden, Forbidden, Holy Ground on Delta didn't look this bad."

"No, not there. This is what it was like in Expansive, Haunted, Sea of Sand when I went there."

"Well, let's proceed!" Chouji said grandly. "Standing around avails us nothing, boys!"

"I'm a girl!"

"Oh, yes! Girls, then!"

"But Sharingan's not a girl!" I said.

Sharingan watched our exchange and laughed. I felt my tension ease, but only a little.

We entered the dungeon.

It was the same as the field. The floors and walls contained rips revealing the same lines of meaningless alphanumeric characters.

"Wasn't entry to this field prohibited?" Chouji asked.

'But we got in." Sharingan said, confused.

"Hmm. Of course! Then the prohibition was lifted, but the reason for this is shrouded in the reek of secrecy!" Chouji concluded. "I see! Then we have come to expose the terrible secret, tight, boys?"

"I told you, we aren't all _boys!_"

"I apologize, BlackChar!"

"As long as you remember this time…Wait, what? 'Char'!? Get my name right!"

_A fish!? _Chouji annoyed me to no end. I just prayed he was trying to be funny.

We continued forward, my heart skipping a beat every time we turned a bend in the passage or descended a staircase. The farther we went, the more fear of Data Bugs was overshadowed by my hope that we might encounter the girl who granted Sharingan his power. At least she could explain what it was and why it worked. _Perhaps if we understood that, we might understand the reason Sharingan's friend and Konohamaru are in comas._

We were descending a staircase when Sharingan suddenly stopped.

"It's a dead end." He announced.

That was very odd.

"Well we mastered this dungeon," Chouji said grandiosely. "There was no mystery. Now my friends, let us return to town!"

But the fact that there was no mystery was itself a mystery. We'd explored every room and passageway, yet we hadn't encountered anything at all.

"They're not here." Sharingan's voice echoed hollowly through the dim darkness of the dead-end passage. "Neither the black creature nor the girl."

* * *

Wow, this was a long chapter! Hope you enjoyed it and not confused either. I wonder if you survived reading it though…

Please do ask any questions.

I will try to update soon since its holiday time for me! Please review. But i won't update if i don't get enough reviews, hehe. So you people who don't review better review!


	4. Bullying and the White Room

Here's the next chapter!

Disclaimer: .hack//Another Bith is not mine, it is Miu Kawasaki's. I just wanted other people to read this amazing story, so Iput it up with some romance added.

* * *

.hack//Another Birth

Vol. 1//Infection

Chapter 4: Bullying and the White Room

I decided to write an e-mail to Marin, the person who'd first posted the thread about the mysterious girl on the BBS. Assuming the post had'nt been a complete fabrication in the first place, something must have happened after it was posted. If the information was intentionally false—which was entirely possible—I didn't think she would answer, but I had a feeling I could get at least some kind of reaction. All I could do was wait.

I arrived at Dun Loireag for my rendezvous with Sharingan and wandered around. Finding myself back at the grunty ranch, I checked out the strange animals to kill some time. Somehow, while lost in thought, I agreed to buy one of the disgusting little creatures from the NPC rancher.

I tried cancelling, but it didn't work. The rancher just smiled at me and kept repeating, "You made a good choice. The grunty is a fun companion."

My grunty was the size of a puppy, with a pig-shaped body and squashed face. It looked up at me with watery eyes.

"Mama, foooood." whined the grunty.

_Is it speaking to me? __I didn't know these things could talk!_

Its eyes shined in anticipation, its tail frantically wagging as it looked at me. I already had my hands full taking care of Konohamaru's prairie dog, Hana. _Could I handle taking care of a pet in real life and in the game?_

I asked the rancher how to take care for it. He explained that I had to feed it regularly and that it eventually would grow to its 'third stage', whatever that meant, and then it would be large enough for me to ride in the fields. It seemed hard to believe tat this tiny creature could grow to the size of a horse.

_Maybe __I'll grow attached to the grunty as I grew attached to Hana?_

"I'm telling you now, I'm very busy." I warned the grunty, but it simply wagged its tail.

I returned to the rendezvous point and found Sharingan waiting.

"Been waiting long?" I asked.

"Nope." Sharingan replied. Then I noticed another character waiting with him—a fidgety Twin Blade in blue clothes. Her outfit showed off her short pink hair. The arm and legs of her slender body were painted with unique designs.

"Um...who are you?" I asked. _Has he roped another innocent bystander into this mess?_

She looked at Sharingan and beamed.

"This is someone I helped the other day when she had trouble getting to a Gott Statue," said Sharingan. "I just happened to meet her again near the Chaos Gate. I thought we'd play as a party of three today."

"I'm Natsume! It's nice to meet you!" she bowed and smiled awkwardly. For some reason, I felt like I should keep my eye on her.

"I'm BlackCherry. Likewise!" I replied.

They invited me into their party.

_W__ill we be all right with this new girl tagging along? I guess Sharingan considers her another companion. _I wondered what his criteria were fro inviting people along on perilous journeys, but then I had to admit I'd done almost the same thing with Kakashi and Obito.

"Wow, BlackCherry! You're a Heavy Blade. Cool!" Natsume said in a shrill voice as she ogled the large sword on my back.

"Uh…yeah?"

"I'll do my best to be a reliable resource for the party too!" she said.

"I'm not very reliable myself." I muttered.

"Huh? Sharingan was just saying how reassuring it is to be with you!"

"He was?" I said, surprised. _He was being too courteous. I hadn't been reliable to him at all._

A black-haired Wavemaster walked up to Sharingan. "Do you have a minute?" he asked.

_I__s this another one of Sharingan's acquaintances?_

"Sure. Why aren't you with Mia today?" Sharingan wondered aloud.

The boy looked embarrassed and started fidgeting.

"Is something wrong with Mia, Haku?" Sharingan asked.

Haku lifted his head and said no more. I realized that they had switched to private chat.

Natsume and I stood around like idiots, waiting for them to finish. I was about to put the FMD down and go make some tea when Sharingan finally broke the silence.

"Sorry. I can't go anywhere with you today," he said, shaking his head. "Haku needs me with him—it's very important. I'll contact you later!"

"What?" Natsume cried, flustered.

"I'm really sorry! I'll e-mail you later!"

Sharingan quickly ran towards the Chaos Gate with Haku and they disappeared, leaving me alone with Natsume.

"I can't believe he left like that." Natsume whined like an abandoned puppy.

"How can he do that?" I was more angry than annoyed. _How can he leave me with a girl I've only just met!?_

I could have ditched Natsume, but I figured I should be courteous. "What are your plans, Natsume? I was thinking of jumping into a field solo."

She turned, startled.

"Do you want to go together?" I asked, inviting her into a party. I couldn't just leave her here.

"Yes! I'll do my best!" she replied joyously.

"What places have you visited so far?" I asked.

"I've often gone to a place called bursting-something. It was written on the BBS as being newbie-friendly."

"Bursting?"

"Yeah, that was the A coordinate."

Remembering how I randomly chose coordinates for Konohamaru brought up bitter memories. _I need to take Rin someplace safe!_

"I don't really care where we go," she continued. "Why don't you choose?"

"Oh. Okay."

We went to the Chaos Gate. It was my first time as a party leader. I'd have to choose carefully. I couldn't afford to make any mistakes.

I scanned through the menus.

"Let me see here…" I said, as I threw dome words together. "Buried, Orange, Gate…?"

_How was __that?_

It was Level 25. _Impossible. _I was only Level 20 and Natsume a mere 13. Anything beyond Level 16-18 would be too hard.

I thought Beautiful, Her, Scent had a nice ring to it. But it was Level 22.

There sure were a lot of high-level fields on the Theta server. I wondered if any would be suited to Natsume.

"Find anything yet?" Natsume asked hopefully.

"Not yet. Let me keep looking."

Sinking, Someone's, Scaffold came up next. I didn't like those words. They felt ominous. But the area level was only 17.

"Is that no good?" Natsume inquired.

"Um…I guess it'll have to do."

Natsume and I warped to a surprisingly beautiful scene: gently falling snowflakes descended from a beautiful winter sky.

I could see other characters wandering around, so I thought it would be safe. The key warning sign would be broken scenery revealing computer code. I didn't see any.

As we walked, Natsume told me how she'd met Sharingan.

She entered a dungeon hoping to acquire some new equipment, but her level wasn't high enough and she had to flee from getting killed. When she returned to the entrance, she encountered Sharingan. Once she explained her situation, Sharingan kindly offered to help her find a new magic item.

Natsume proudly showed off what she had found. "These Twin Blades are my key treasure—they're Spiral Edge!"

_Sharingan could be really nice, even to total strangers. __He reminds me a little of my brother._

"I want to become strong like Sharingan! I've got to try hard!" Natsume declared as she tightly grasped her Spiral Edge.

Sharingan's strength wasn't just in his character's level—it was in his personality. But she was right; I had to be strong, too.

Once Natsume had had enough of fighting (and treasure hunting) in the area, we returned to town and I logged off for the day.

She was nicer than I first thought. I e-mailed Sharingan my thoughts and told him we'd fun adventuring, but that I hoped we could get back to our shared goals soon.

x-o-0-0-o-x

"Bye! See you tomorrow!" as I hurried to tennis practice, I waved to friends who were leaving for the day. I was running late, so I took the stairs to the lockers two at a time. When I arrived at the door, I could hear voices inside.

"I hate when people shirk their responsibilities!"

'I can't believe she was chosen when she can't even get here on time."

"Maybe they'll replace her before the season is over."

_A__re they referring to me? _I opened the opened the door and the room fell silent. I walked past the cold stares and quickly changed.

I had been my turn for classroom cleanup and hall duty, so I'd told Captain Shizune earlier that I'd be late. I was actually on time for tennis practice; I just didn't have time to help with setup.

When I arrived at the court, I apologized to Shizune fro being late.

"What do you mean? You're right on time."

"Yeah, but I couldn't help with setup today."

"That's all right. I found someone to cover when you told me earlier. It's no big deal." She said, smiling. "Let's have another good day out here today!"

"Sakura, you're early!" Hinata said half-jokingly. "Did you switch with someone for hall duty or something?"

"Not a chance." I replied. "I just finished and rushed over here as soon as I could." As Hinata and I talked, I watched the other freshmen getting ready. Normally, they would joke with each other, but today everyone silently concentrated on their tasks. Maybe it was my imagination, but something was off today.

During practice, I felt everyone's eyes on me. But whenever I turned around, everyone quickly looked away. I couldn't understand what had changed since the previous day.

After practice ended, I grab hold of the net to help clean up.

"Aren't you tired, Haruno? We'll take care of the cleanup." said a freshman who had never spoken to me before. Though she acted polite, I could tell she just wanted me to leave.

"It's okay!" I reassured her. "It's faster when everyone helps out."

I certainly was tired, but I didn't want to complain about it. Cleanup was done by freshmen; that's the way things were. I was a freshman; it didn't matter that I was first string and they weren't.

As I walked to the storeroom to put away the net and balls, I noticed Hinata wasn't around. Usually, she would wait for me so we could walk home together.

"Where's Hinata?" I asked the girl who'd spoken to me earlier.

"Got me." She replied curtly.

_Is Hinata avoiding me too!?_

I rushed back to the locker room, where some of the upperclassmen were still chatting away. Hinata wasn't there either, and her bag wasn't in the locker we shared.

_I__f she had to leave early, why didn't she say anything to me during practice?_

"Good practice today!" I said to the upperclassmen. No one responded. I shrugged; perhaps no they were too engrossed in their own conversations to hear me.

I quickly changed and left.

On days I had practiced, I rode my bike to school—I only rode the bus on the other days, when I would visit the hospital. As I kneeled to unlock my bike, I heard a voice shout, "Hey, wait up!"

_It__'s Hinata! _"Where were you?" I asked.

"I had to meet Tenten. Didn't anyone tell you?"

"No." I shook my head.

"I asked them to tell you to wait for me."

"You did?"

"Of course." She frowned.

"No one said anything to me."

"Oh well, I'm they were just tired and forgot."

She laughed off the incident, but I could tell that my problems were probably just beginning. Hinata had stuttered, she never did since the day we became friends.

x-o-0-0-o-x

When I opened my locker the following day, my heart nearly jumped out of my chest. Someone had maliciously cut the laces of my shoes. It was a clear cut, like someone took the scissors right up the centre.

Whoever did it didn't stick around to see my reaction. I was alone. I had some spares, so I quickly replaced the laces and tried not to let it get to me. But it was a struggle. I didn't understand why this was happening. _Did I do something to make someone angry with me? But, what?_

Hinata had always been my workout partner, but today she was paired off with an upperclassman. I tried to get her attention, but she didn't look my way. I couldn't just stand there, so I exercised by myself. A few minutes after I started, Shizune ran up to me.

"Haruno, you can't do warm-ups alone. Why didn't you say something?" Before I could make an excuse, she called Tenten over. "When you're alone, ask Tenten to help you."

"Hey! I can help you with warm-ups! You ready?" Tenten asked eagerly.

"Thank you." I replied.

During practice, I could feel my team mates' cold stares I tried to ignore them, but they bored into me.

My rally partner (another girl who didn't get picked) hit so hard that I spent the entire practice chasing balls from one end of the court to the other. She was merciless, and by the time we finished, I was exhausted.

One day after practice when I was about to leave, the rest following behind me with cold stares, I noticed Sasuke look at me with a bothered look. Feeling lonely by myself, I walked up to him; even if I wasn't lonely I would have walk up to him.

"What." I blurted out.

"I'm just wondering how dumb you are."

"WHA—"

I got distracted as I heard whispering from my team mates, who walked past me and Sasuke. I had a feeling that talking to him, made my problems worse.

"Don't let them get to you." Sasuke told me, I could tell he knew that I was bothered by them. But I still didn't know the reason behind it.

"You're the only freshman who's first-string right? He asked.

"Yeah. Why?"

"Nothing."

We stood there in silence, both of us saying nothing. Then a thought came to me.

"Why are you still here after school?" I remembered that the times that I spoke to him most were after tennis practice. But he had told me before that he didn't play soccer in school.

"I decided to play soccer. Just to waste some time." He replied like it was nothing.

"Oh. You sure are strange." I blurted out by accident. Sasuke gave me a look, I blushed.

"Um. Sorry."

"Heh," Sasuke stuffed his hands into his pocket. "Well see you." He said and walked off.

I didn't get why he said 'see you', but I shrugged it off. I was exhausted and just wanted to go home. I had a tough practice.

It had continued like that for the rest of the week. I got used to the hard practices, but I couldn't stand everybody's cold attitude.

Even though it bothered me, I came home each night and acted cheerful, no matter how tired or lonely I felt.

I couldn't bring my school problems to the dinner table; we had enough things to worry about as it was. But I was getting seriously depressed on the inside.

x-o-0-0-o-x

I had a reply from Marin. She wrote that someone had actually _rewritten _the coordinates in her original post! She couldn't imagine why or for what reason, but she said she was thoroughly creeped out; she passed along the coordinates she'd originally written, but strongly advised me not to go there.

The fact that some hacker or even administrator had rewritten her post meant someone was trying to hide something. It only intensified my desire to go.

I wrote to Sharingan, and we met up on Theta server to go to Cursed, Despair, Paradise, but when we tried the gate, the location was protected; instead of warping us to the field when we picked the final menu item, a new screen interface popped up with some sort of cross-shape. The cross looked like it was made out of crystals with missing shards. I couldn't tell what we were supposed to do with it.

"Argh!" I said. "Sharingan, didn't you mention something before about getting into protected areas?"

"Gate-hacking isn't that easy," he replied. "To break the protection I need to gather more Virus Cores—which I can only get by using Data Drain on monsters or Data Bugs."

I didn't know how he'd learn to gate-hack, but I imagined the ability came from the same source as his bracelet. Though I felt near my breaking point, I did the only thing I could. I waited.

x-o-0-0-o-x

When practice ended, the juniors quickly returned to the locker room. So did the freshman. After all, they had asked so nicely if I could clean up alone today. How could I refuse?

I hoped that it might make up whatever I had done to get everyone on my case. _But what could I have done?_

I always greeted everyone when I arrived, I always helped out wherever I could, and I always played my best.

Even though playing the 'victim' was never a very attractive role, I couldn't help feeling sorry for myself. I had tears to prove it, too. I hated crying, but I couldn't help it.

"Sakura!" Hinata called to me as I carried the net back to the storeroom. I quickly wiped the tears from my eyes.

"Someone just told me you were cleaning up by yourself."

"Yeah, it's fine. I guess the others had something else to do."

Without another word, Hinata jumped din to help me. After a while, she asked, "Sakura, are you okay?"

I could tell she was worried. At the same time, I couldn't believe she was acting like she didn't know what was going on. She must have noticed how strangely people were treating me. Even she seemed to avoid me at times, and she knows me brother is in hospital. _Of course I'm not okay!_

"Yeah, I'm fine." I lied.

Hinata gulped. "Sakura, I'm sorry."

I didn't want to hear it. "All done! Let's hurry up and change so we can go home."

The lights were still on in the locker room. The upperclassmen's voices were barely audible:

"I can't stand Haruno's attitude."

"Stupid freshmen don't know anything."

"It's like nothing can touch her as long as Shizune's got her back!"

"She doesn't complain, but it's an act."

"How about we go after Tenten next?"

'Sure, that sounds fun. As long as Shizune doesn't notice."

I couldn't believe they were bullying me just for being picked din the singles division! I felt dizzy.

_Get a grip! __You haven't done anything wrong!_

Ever since Konohamaru had collapsed, I'd decided I wouldn't complain about anything. I entered the locker room as calmly as I could.

"Good practice today1"

They stopped talking the instant I spoke. I concentrated on walking towards my locker. My legs shook.

Hinata's equipment was still missing from the locker. _When will things return to normal? Or will it be like this from now on?_

"Haruno's here; want to leave?" I heard a girl say from the other side of some lockers. I stiffened.

"Yeah, let's get outta here."

I quickly changed and started to walk towards my bike.

Even though I now knew why I was being picked on, there was nothing I could do about it. As a gym teacher, my dad must have seen this sort of thing all the time.

I remembered something he once told me: "Even if you're bullied, play fair."

I was. But it bothered me a great deal. I was getting completely ostracized. Who _wouldn't _be bothered?

Dad also told me to talk about it with someone I could trust.

Who could I trust? Captain Shizune? Tenten? I couldn't tell them. That would seem like tattling. I didn't want to do something lame, and I sure didn't want to make it worse than it already was.

I understood how the upperclassmen who hadn't gotten picked must feel. But I wasn't responsible if they had something to say to me, they should say it to my face.

I wondered if I could handle the responsibility of being on the tennis team _and _discovering the cause of Konohamaru's coma. Maybe it was impossible to do both. Lately, my world felt as if it were about to crumble.

"Pull yourself together! Don't wimp out!" I told myself as I reached my bike, but to find Sasuke stare at me like I was a freak. Like always when I'm embarrassed, my face heated up.

He shook his head and slung his bookcase over his shoulder, "Do you always take so long to come out?" he asked.

What did he mean? _Wait, could it be that last time he said 'see you' meant that he would wait for me after tennis practice!? _I blushed. Why would he do that? Could it be because he noticed that I was being bullied? But that's impossible! I'm probably just thinking too much.

"Um…Well I was doing cleanup…" I paused.

Sasuke stared at me more curiously.

"…alone." I ended. "But Hinata, my best friend came to help me out!" I quickly added.

I didn't know why, but I felt nervous whenever I was with Sasuke. It was nice to actually find a time to talk to him, but I couldn't help but feel nervous at times.

"Next time, come out as fast as you can. I don't have all day to accompany you." he said.

I would have said that I didn't ask him to, but I knew what the true meaning was. It meant that I'm his friend and that he will accompany me home, because I felt so lonely after tennis practice.

How he knew that, I didn't know. But I asked, and he said that the soccer field didn't that far from the tennis court. So sometimes during soccer, he takes a peak at the tennis courts, since I old him that I play it.

I asked why would he want to see me play, and he replied that it was out of curiosity if I was really good enough to be in first string. This owed him a pissed off me walking away and heading home. But I heard it, I heard him chuckle. I didn't know that a cold hearted person could laugh so easily, even if it was a chuckle. Though, I didn't know much about it. But could I trust him? Maybe note yet. I didn't want to burden him more; he already offered to accompany home in place of Hinata.

I could be strong. I could still fight. I could be BlackCherry. I didn't have to let my team mates taunts get to me. After all, I still had some friends. Especially my new friend, Uchiha Sasuke. I felt happy he'd become my friend.

I came home exhausted, but I still needed to go online. Fortunately, it was the weekend, so I could sleep in. I booted up my PC.

I had an e-mail from Sharingan with yesterday's date on it. He'd finally gotten his hands on a Virus Core, and we could now enter the protected are. I had a bad feeling…

x-o-0-0-o-x

I had to forget my schoolmates' jealousy and focus on the game. At least in The World, I was strong.

I met up with Sharingan at the Theta server Chaos Gate. "Hi. You ready to go to Cursed, Despaired, Paradise?"

"Sure. Do you mind if someone comes along?" Sharingan replied.

"Who?" I asked, wary.

"A Wavemaster I helped out the other day."

"Uh, that's fine, but why didn't you mention anything before now?"

"I didn't think it would be a big deal. Is it?"

Sharingan had his bracelet, so I guessed we'd be all right. "Nah, no problem." I smiled reassuringly, but I worried about the constant string of strangers he brought along.

"Nya ha ha! Sorry for the wait!"

I turned and saw our Wavemaster draped in blue and white baggy clothes. Her pink hair covered by a hat that split in two. It hung down like a floppy-eared rabbit. I couldn't believe this was the Wavemaster Sharingan had talked about. I felt my strength drain.

"Good evening, I'm BlackCherry." I said half-heartedly.

"Whatever works, girl. I'm Rinnnnnn!" She held on the 'r' much longer than necessary, and her voice seemed too cheerful.

For some reason, it reminded me of the tennis team girls who hated me. _Fake. _Saying I was hostile towards her would be an understatement.

"Are you always this pointlessly cheerful?" I asked.

Rin stared blankly for a moment. "It's best to keep things fun, isn't it? If you think toooo much about stuff, they aren't fun anymore."

"So you don't worry about anything?"

'Nyaaa ha haa! I sure don't. After all, I've got nothing to worry about."

"Must be nice not to have any hardships." I folded my arms.

"Hardships?" questioned Rin. "Of course I have hardships. Everyone alive has good days and bad. But everything we experience only serves to enlighten us!"

She seemed blindly optimistic, like the kind of person who would rearrange deckchairs on the _Titanic._

"BlackCherry, are you alright?" Sharingan asked, slightly worried.

"I'm fine," I said, embarrassed.

"I'm sorry if I'm buggin' you. I didn't mean to!" Rin peered at my face. "Whaaat's up? Something must have happened. Keep your chin up!"

Rin patted me on the head. I felt dizzy.

"Y'know what? I might get to see that technique again today." She said.

_T__echnique? Does she mean the Data Drain?_

"Let's go, then." declared Sharingan.

"How do we get in?" I asked.

"I'll show you." Sharingan activated the gate menu and selected the coordinates. When the crystal cross-shape appeared, he produced six shards from his inventory.

"These are Virus Cores," he said. "When I insert them into the right places in these crystals, the protection will be lifted and we'll be able to get in." He got to work.

"Where did you learn to do this?" I asked.

"Mia taught me." He said matter-of-factly.

"Mia?"

"Yeah, didn't he tell you?" Rin jumped in.

"No." I replied. "Why don't you tell me about Mia?"

"She's someone I met. She looks like a cat." Sharingan clearly didn't want to talk about it.

"A cat? You mean like a real cat?"

'Noooo1" Rin cried. "She's like half-cat, half-human." Rin replied. "But she sounds cool."

_A feline figure? _I'd never seen anyone like that in The World. And why would she teach Sharingan how to gate-hack? Better yet, how did she know how to do it?

Clearly, Sharingan wasn't ready to confide in me, or he would have told me all of this before.

x-o-0-0-o-x

We arrived in another area with broken graphics. The pitch-black ground wriggled as if it were alive. I looked around nervously, expecting to see a Data Bug at any moment.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" Rin looked around. "This is just like the other day."

As we headed for the dungeon, we encountered a giant human hand. Suddenly, Rin shouted, 'Yow! It's moving!"

The dungeon's entrance was actually the mouth of a giant who looked as if he'd been buried alive. We entered his mouth, but it gave me the creeps, like we were being eaten alive. We proceeded cautiously, as monsters his in every nook and cranny.

"Look, it's the same inside." Sharingan pointed to the broken graphics within the dungeon.

My heart raced, but I tried to remain focused. _Will we run into a Data Bug?_

We fought our way into the depths, and along the way, Rin managed to prove useful in combat. She figured out the enemy's weaknesses and quickly exploited them with her magic. At the same time, she kept a close watch on our health and hit us with a recovery spell whenever we were low.

We finally arrived in the deepest part, where a purplish mist obscured a chamber door.

"There it is." I pointed.

"Looks suspicious, and that's promising." Rin whispered.

"You ready?" Sharingan asked.

"Yeah. You guys scared?" I asked.

Sharingan shook his head. Rin practically jumped into the air. "No, not a bit! Come one, let's go!"

Sharingan advanced into the fog.

The interior of the room was pure white. There were no discernible boundary lines; everything blended together. Inside the room lay a disturbingly large number of teddy bears.

The bears were scattered everywhere. Their eyes were unfocused, bulging out; their bodies were a dull yellow colour. In the center of the room stood a canopy bed. It almost resembled a child's room.

"Wa-cha-cha, what is this place?" Rin's voice reverberated around the room.

A man's voice suddenly echoed around us:

"And so I shall name her Aura. Without you, she would not exist—the shining girl, Aura. We will entrust her with our will. Our future is in her hands. She is our—"

"Hey! Is this the ghost everyone's been talking about? Come on out, ghost!" Rin waved her staff around, but the voice stopped.

I waited nervously to what would happen. I felt as if the bears were watching us with their hollow eyes.

"What _is_ all this?" I asked.

"I don't know, but I wonder if Aura is the girl." said Sharingan.

"You mean the one who gave you the bracelet?" I asked.

"Yeah." I noticed he touched the bracelet whenever anyone mentioned it.

Something resting on the floor caught my eye. I tried grabbing it, but the moment I touched it, the computer log went crazy, generating the following message:

**Shunning the field broken by Wave,**

**The shadowed girl whispers,**

"**Surely, I will return."**

**Alas, the truth unbeknownst,**

**Awaiting her at journey's end;**

**Eternal mourning for her land.**

"Are you seeing this?" I asked.

"Yeah." Sharingan replied.

"What does it mean?" inquired Rin.

"None of it makes any sense." Sharingan added.

_Is this something from mythology?_

We were all bewrildered.

Nothing else happened there. The vision of the hollow eyed teddy bears haunted me fro some time afterwards.

Looking back on our visit to that strange place, which we later called Harald's Room, I think that must have been the first time we were finally able to step into the hidden kernel of the game. There was a real-world mystery behind the words we heard there. It wasn't just something invented for our amusement.

"_The World may be virtual, but those people are real!"_

That's what Konohamaru told me right before he lost consciousness. At that point in time, I thought I understood what he'd meant. Actually, he was saying that, in a sense, The World itself was real.

Yes…The World wasn't just some game…

* * *

Finally I'm done with this chapter. I was kind of on writers block with the characters. Like with Haku and Mia, I was thinking of making Mia Zabuza…Bu tit didn't really fit. Also the girl Natsume, I wanted to put her as Rin. But Rin at the moment suited her nicely…

Ask questions if it doesn't make sense.

And PLEASE review. A "I read" would be just fine.

Akemi_Akira


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